Saving Alice
by Akira-sun
Summary: Two months was far too long to wait and Tarrant Hightop needed to find Alice before he slipped into madness for good.


Two months; two very long months had passed since Alice had decided to return to her home in the above world where her mother and sister were along with the man that had proposed to her before she fell down the rabbit hole. In those two months, Tarrant felt the madness that was contained inside of him start to bubble up more and more often since her leaving. It seemed that she had a rather calming effect on him and pushed the madness to the fringes of his mind, but without her there to bring him back to reality he felt quite lost. He sat in his customary seat at the table surrounded by Thackeray, Malyumkin, and even the blasted cat had decided to make an appearance.

"It isn't the same without Alice, is it?" Malyumkin sighed sadly. "Do you think she'll come back Tarrant?" Tarrant's eyes darkened as his mind debated the question he already knew the answer to. Finally picking his head up, he looked around the too large table and smiled lightly.

"No, I don't think she will. She has a life and who are we to keep her here when she is needed up there more than she needed here?" Tarrant replied. He took a small sip of his now lukewarm tea that lost most of its taste once it had cooled too much. Chessur swirled his tea and grinned evilly when a sudden idea crossed his mind.

"Why don't you go up there? It's obvious that you care for the girl, why don't you simply go after her?" he asked. "I could see it in her eyes that she cares about you as well. You are losing your grip, Hatter, and I think she may be the only way you can keep yourself in reality." Tarrant took in a sharp breath at the statement but didn't protest as he knew the truth behind the words. He needed his Alice desperately and the thought that she may have told the lord that she would marry him pushed him even further into his madness. He stood up and pushed himself away from the table suddenly, walking down the well-worn path towards the white queen's castle.

"Where are you going, Hatter?" Thackeray called after him. "You haven't finished your tea!" He threw the chipped cup but it missed Tarrant entirely, shattering into tiny pieces on the earth. The Hatter said nothing as he picked up the pace in his rush to get to the above world as quickly as he could.

Alice stood in her long white gown in front of Hamish who was done up in the best suit money could buy. The priest droned on at the alter before them, giving the traditional service before he married the couple. Alice wrung her hands lightly in anticipation; she wasn't much for having all the eyes on her though she wasn't really looking forward to being married to Hamish in the first place. She knew that she really couldn't do better than a lord in marriage and she had to think about her future after all. If she wanted to be able to do anything with her life, she had to have someone with a noble background to help her to make sure that she was heard even in a small measurement.

"We are here today before family and friends to join the lives of Hamish and Alice together for the rest of their lives. They have both have come here of their own volition to be joined in holy matrimony and if there is any reason from those here today as to why these two should not be married, speak now," the minister spoke. No one spoke after a few awkward moments and he took that as his sign to continue on. "Hamish, take this ring and place it on Alice's finger and repeat after me if you would. I, Hamish, take you Alice to be my lawfully wedded wife."

"Tarrant, what a nice surprise to see you. What do I owe the honor of your company?" The queen asked presently. Tarrant breathed heavily trying to catch his breath after the haste he took to arrive at the shining castle.

"I must get to Alice," He finally got out between his breaths. "I realize how stupid I was to just let her go so easily and now I need to get to the above world and find her." She turned to face him, her dress swirling around her at the sudden movement. She smiled brightly at him, a knowing look forming in her eyes.

"You were a fool, Tarrant, I will give you that. But why should I help you get to her when you let her go the first time? How do I know that you won't throw it away again when you find her? Getting up isn't as easy without the blood that I gave to Alice and I've already used the rest of it and I do not like when my time has been wasted for naught," The queen demanded. She sat down in a nearby chair and waited for the answer she sought from the now calmly breathing hatter.

"This time, I will not let her slip through my fingers. I love her, I know she loves me and I should have proclaimed it from the moment I realized it. Now I feel is my last chance to get her and make her mine for good. Please, I beg of you to help me get to her before it is too late!" Tarrant begged on bended knee before the queen. She nodded, granting the request of help from her dear friend. Tarrant couldn't help but to smile as the White Queen began to move around the large kitchen, preparing the necessary items to get him above.

"This will get you above to your dear lass. If I see you again, I better see Alice with you with love shining between you," she warned before handing a vial of purple liquid over to the excited Hatter. He murmured his thanks before tipping his head back and downing the vile tasting liquid in one go. He felt his insides being warped and tugged in many different directions before finally a light feeling took over and the world he knew disappeared to reveal a very foreign land that had taken its place.

A building stood before him with the doors open, showing a very beautiful Alice standing at the other end. Her left hand sat in another man's hand and Tarrant could see something being placed on her long finger that shined when the light hit for a heartbeat. He took in a sharp breath in as he remembered that Alice said that she may have to marry once she got home. He took a calming breath before stepping forward just inside the church and made himself known.

"Alice!" a voice called from somewhere in the back. The name rung out and echoed around the church as it bounced off the walls. Alice snapped her head up and met the brilliant green eyes that belonged to the man she had been an idiot to leave in Underland. She couldn't help but to smile as she felt relief wash over her; seeing Tarrant standing there meant that he had consciously sought her out which she would forever be grateful for. "Alice, please don't do this. I should have told you a long time ago, I should have told you the day your fought the Jabberwocky, and I should have told you a million times since. I love you Alice Kingsley with every fiber of my being and I should have never let you go." Alice sobbed as Tarrant's voice washed over her and the words wormed their way into her heart. She wrenched her hand away from Hamish and ran the best she could towards the Mad Hatter; she leaped into his arms and pressed her body firmly into his as if she were afraid that he would vanish if she let go.

The crowd began to whisper their comments amongst themselves as the scene played out in front of them. Hamish looked appalled, though it was a tie between being left at the alter and the strange looking man that was currently holding Alice. His mother rushed to his side and did her best to calm him down before turning her anger towards the supposed bride.

"Alice Kingsley, how dare you do this? You leave my son looking like a fool up here as you run into the arms of another man! You can do no better than Hamish and here you are with a man that looks like he should be locked up in the hospital for everyone's safety," she raged. She stomped down the aisle and gabbed the blonde firmly by the wrist that would most likely leave a bruise in a few hours. The sound of flesh meeting flesh sounded through the church but no one dared moved to protest the Lady in her fit.

"I have no interest in marrying your son and I never have. You are the fool if you ever thought otherwise, my _lady_, and it would do you well to let me go now," Alice growled. She could almost feel Tarrant's anger boiling behind her but he let Alice defend herself for the moment. "Now if you would excuse me, I would like to go be with the man I really love." She turned on her heel, grabbed the Hatter's hand and dragged him just outside and into the immaculately kept garden.

"Alice- if you only said that to get out of marrying that horrid looking man I understand. But I just need to know if you really love me or if you were just saying it," Tarrant whispered, a breathy quality to his voice. His eyes turned dark as he watched a few emotions work across Alice's face but suddenly she grabbed him be the scarf he wore around his neck and pulled his face down to meet hers. Their lips moved together, slowly at first, but their confidence grew and so did the passion within the kiss. Alice pulled away first with a large smile gracing her features before she bit her bottom lip nervously.

"I love you, Tarrant. I love you so much and I don't know what possessed me to leave you and Underworld two months ago, but I have regretted it every day since. Could you ever forgive me?" Alice asked.

"Of course, Alice. I have a way to get us back, if you would like to return with me. The White Queen misses you dearly as well and only got me here after I begged her to help me-" Tarrant began but he was cut off when Alice kissed him again. He ran his fingers through her long blonde hair, tugging it gently which elicited a low moan from Alice. Tarrant pulled away and met Alice's eyes with his vibrant green ones, both knowing what came next. Tarrant took a sip of the liquid first before he handed it off to her just as Mrs. Kensington stepped outside the church after her runaway daughter. She looked out just in time to watch her daughter slip away forever.

"I hope you are happy, Alice. You were always too much of a free spirit for what England could offer you," she whispered, her voice carried away by the sudden wind. Everyone else stepped outside with many confused expressions being passed around as to where the bride had disappeared to. Mrs. Kensington made her way to her carriage before anyone could approach her and headed towards home with a little lighter feeling in her heart.


End file.
